


Not Anything, Really

by scullyseviltwin



Category: The Jersey Shore, The Pauly D Project
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-15
Updated: 2012-06-15
Packaged: 2017-11-07 19:48:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/434709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scullyseviltwin/pseuds/scullyseviltwin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“My dude Vinny is coming to stay with us next week so we gotta show him a good time.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not Anything, Really

**Author's Note:**

> SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP. I don't know, okay? I don't know why I wrote this... maybe because I had ALL THE FEELS. Maybe because I had had an entire bottle of wine. Yes, I'm embarrassed, but not too embarrassed to share, certainly.

He gets the text right before he’s set to go on at the Palms.

“Did you get a call from the producers because they’re doing another season? What’s up kid!”

Pauly flips the iPhone in his hand a few times, considers. Acknowledging that he’d received the call would mean that he would have to make a decision and that’s not something he really wants to do tonight.

He’s got an evening of work ahead of him, spinning for a club full of industry people and he has to make a good impression, the best impression he’s ever made. Then, that’s always been his work ethic, go big, go hard, or go home and though he loves Rhode Island, he just can’t fathom having to go back there and _live_. He’s nervous (so nervous) but betrays none of this as he presses the ‘home’ button on his phone and the screen goes blank.

There’s truly no one he’d rather talk to right now - about his nerves, about the deal he’s just signed with G Unit - but he can’t, can’t go there now. There’s too fucking much he doesn’t get, doesn’t understand.

Like the prolonged silences when they call one another. Not awkward, not heated, just something Pauly doesn’t _understand_. Pauly just doesn’t understand what’s happening here.

\---

_The_ Shore is coming back, yeah buddy! I don’t know if I’ll be around to see my people but, you know, I love it there and, and if I can go back, you know I’m gonna be there. Those are my people, you know?

\---

He wakes up sometime around nine and orders an egg white omelet. Jerry’s gone down to the gym and Ryan and Biggie are both sleeping in; Biggie because he ran around like a mad man the night before, handing out Pauly’s card and Ryan because he hadn’t refused any of the shots that’d been handed to him.

As he tucked into his breakfast, he ran through his text messages. Three from women he hadn’t seen in weeks, one from his manager and still, that one he’d left hanging from Vinny. His thumb hovered over the keypad before setting down the phone to stare at the message.

Would he be returning for another season? The _Shore_ had been a good time but now he felt as though he was actually getting somewhere with his life. He was almost prepared to say that he was through with the casual partying and ready to take this to the next level. But something about the message from Vinny...

They get up to some really fucking ridiculous shit together, that’s for sure, but the thing is, as happy as Pauly is DJing, he’s wicked happy fucking around with Vinny. Flipping the house, pulling pranks on Mike, getting subs, tanning. Just stupid, every day shit and he really misses it more than he’s realized.

Hanging at the shore house...

“Dunno man,” Pauly sends back before he has a chance to stop himself. “Gotta talk to Adam. U should make a trip out here tho it’s crazy.”

It’s nearly noon back on the east coast, so it isn’t long before he hears his phone ding and checks it to find, “For real?” Vinny, always with the proper spelling and punctuation in his texts.

Pauly can’t help but laugh. “Yeah,” he responds. “For sure, any time, just lemme know so I know I’m in town.”

“Alright,” Vinny returns. “I’ll look for tickets tonight or something.”

Pauly stops himself from texting “Good,” back.

Because he shouldn’t care this much, he shouldn’t. He _doesn’t_. He really fucking doesn’t, whatever.

He finishes his omelet, takes a shower, gels his hair.

He doesn’t think about Vinny at all. He really doesn’t.

\---

_It’s different. He’s my bro, you know? We’re tight, we’re just really tight. He_ gets me. [laughs] Nah, nah, he’s definitely my dude.

\---

“Tickets are so cheap right now,” Vinny sends a few weeks later.

Paul texts, “So come now!”

Vinny tells him, “Booked to come in next Thursday, then it’s a cab to the Palms.”

\---

“Hey yo,” he says as he walks into the expansive “living room” of the pent house. Ryan is spread out on a couch texting while Jerry laces up his sneakers. Biggie is nowhere to be seen. “My dude Vinny is coming to stay with us next week so we gotta show him a good time.”

Jerry laughs, “Aw, your girlfriend.”

“So we date a little,” Pauly feigns innocence, “So what?”

“That’s cool man,” Ryan mentions, “He’s a fun guy. Maybe he’ll be more up for helping me find some girls.” The grin he gives is salacious and almost off-putting but Pauly laughs nonetheless and settles at the end of the sofa, sitting on Ryan’s feet.

“Should be good,” he skims a hand over the top of his hair. “Should be good.”

\---

“Cab is heah!” Pauly calls and spins to grin at the camera.

Vinny pops out of the cab, enormous suitcase in tow and stretches out theatrically for the camera.

“What’s up, my dude?” Pauly asks as he sees Vinny step out of the cab, all Jersey swag, Ray Bans glinting in the afternoon light. Holding out his hand, Vinny snatches it and pulls him in for the standard bro hug, shoulder-to-shoulder, three claps on the back.

But Pauly finds him slipping his arm all the way around his friend’s back and holding. He holds on for quite awhile until the camera man clears his throat and the two separate.

Vinny blushes down at the ground and pulls his suitcase a bit closer to his heels. “Looks like you’ve got a dope set up from what I’ve seen.”

“You’ve got no idea, no idea, seriously kid,” Pauly says, leading him away.

\---

_It’s so good to have my dude back, you know? Me and Vinny, we go way back, way back. [laughs] It’s just good to see him. It’s hard because he’s so far away but I’m glad he made it out._

\---

_I’ve never been to Vegas! It’s gonna be, yeah, [laugh] it’s gonna be crazy. How can it not be? You see the stuff he gets up to! Ryan’s saying he’s gonna hook me up, [laughs]._

\---

“What sneakers you gonna wear?”

Pauly looks down at his extensive selection. “White Adidas, kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiid.”

“Hah, nice choice, nice choice.” Vinny claps him on the back.

It doesn’t feel like anything at all.

\---

It’s not like they get royally fucked up, but well, they kind of do. Pauly doesn’t have a gig and it’s Saturday so he has Biggie pull some weight (no pun intended) and get them on the list for Marquee. They get a booth and table service and he doesn’t really see who’s handing him drinks, he just takes them.

There are women, women everywhere, everyone trying to get up into their area, desperate for a quick taste of fame, just trying to get their faces on camera.

“This is insane, dude!” Vinny yells, leaning in, slinging an arm around his friend’s shoulders. “INSANE!”

“Right?” Pauly yells back and pulls away, looks at Vinny. He’s so happy, so thrilled, so excited. He blames it on the liquor when a warmth blooms in his chest at seeing his friend’s smile. He blames it on the liquor because that’s just what you do.

\---

Two girls, one blonde and petite and pretty, the other asian and very, very tall, follow them out of the club, hands in the boy’s hands. “Yeah, Laura, you sure about this?” Vinny whispers into the Asian’s neck; he’s ever the gentleman, never wants to take advantage.

Pauly had started taking cues from him ages ago. “You okay coming up to my room?” he asks his girl - _Beth > he remembers_ and even as she nods, she sways on her feet. “Okay, that’s not a yes, that’s a-”

Beth trips a bit and stumbles and Laura immediately turns, disengages from Vinny and stoops to help her friend. “Fuck,” she says, “She’s wasted. Oh fuck, fuck. I need to take her...”

“Yeah,” Vinny agrees, “Let’s get you outside, get a cab.” His voice holds a trace of bitterness but still, he wraps his arm around Beth and helps her up, helps get her walking. Pauly tags along behind, just watches. The cameramen follow.

As they get outside, Pauly can’t explain it but he turns around and asks “You guys mind packing it in? Just, we’ll get more tomorrow night, out again...” he suggests and that _never works_ but it works this time because they drop the boom and hitch the camera higher and shrug and _leave_.

“Fuck, this is so embarrassing,” Laura says as a cab pulls up.

“Nah, you didn’t sign the waiver, this won’t make it on television,” Vinny explains and Laura visibly relaxes.

“Thank fuck,” she comments as she gets Beth into the cab. “Thanks, you’re nice,” she leans in for a kiss and turns it into something that very much wouldn’t belong on television anyway. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be!” Vinny says as she climbs into the cab.Pauly thinks he might wave as they drive away. “Dude.” He turns around. “I am _wasted_! What the hell!?”

Pauly’s face is blank for as long he can stand and then he bursts into laughter, Vinny following suit. “Me too!”

\---

It’s fine, they make it into the elevator and Pauly managed to swipe his card against the keyholder. “Can’t believe you have a penthouse you famous motherfucker,” Vinny laughs.

“Hey, just... hey!” Pauly manages, doesn’t want to notice how close they’re leaning to one another against the wall of the elevator.

“Nah,” Vinny’s voice drops, “I’m proud of you, man.”

\---

It’s four o’clock when they step into the penthouse and for once, all is quiet and all is dark. “We the last ones back?” Vinny asks, tripping into the room, hands out, stopping himself against Pauly’s shoulders.

“Don’t know,” he says, making sure the door is locked before turning back to his friend. Fuck, fuck, god damn it, no. He was supposed to bring a girl home tonight. _Vinny_ was supposed to bring a girl home tonight. They weren’t supposed to be... standing alone in this ridiculously large living room _looking_ at each other.

All he can really see of Vinny is a white t-shirt and the shine of his eyes in the dim light. There’s another tug in his chest and Pauly really, fucking a, would very much like to ignore it because he hasn’t figured out what it is yet.

And he figures if he could stop looking at Vinny the feeling might go away.

But he can’t stop looking and so it doesn’t.

“Right,” Vinny says, quite clearly, quite crisp as he takes a step forward.

He presses his lips suddenly to Pauly and the other man goes stock still, takes a solid, slow step back. “The _fuck?_ Vinny?!” he almost yells, but remembers that people are sleeping. “What the _fuck_ , man?”

Vinny blinks, his hands fallen to Pauly’s shoulders. “I don’t even know. I don’t even know...”

“The fuck,” Pauly says again but it’s too late because he’s backed Vinny up to the wall and he’s kissing him, actually kissing him, he’s kissing a _guy_ and fuck it, right? Fuck it, okay? He’s had a lot to drink and he’s _kissing someone_ and it feels fucking great.

Not Beth that he’s kissing, he’s kissing Vinny. And Vinny’s kissing him back, tongues slicking together, teeth nipping. Oh fuck, fuck, fuck.

His dude, his best dude.

It’s not... unappealing.

“Pauly, Pauly,” Vinny says, shaking away. “Okay, alright, okay, jesus!” Vinny scrubs his hands over his face and takes a step to the left, away. “Where are the camera,s oh god, there are cameras, what am I-”

“Dude, it’s four, they’re gone,” and for whatever reason it feels like he’s justifying this, like he’s okay with it. He shouldn’t be okay with this, there’s so much _wrong_ about this. And then Vinny is in front of him and panting and Pauly just wants to...

Kiss him again. What is going on, what the hell? Did someone put something in his drink?

“Hey man, I missed you,” he says, on a whim and is so glad that it’s dark because he can feel himself blushing.

“Yeah,” Vinny huffs out a laugh. “Yeah, me too.”

They both head off to their beds, neither one of them saying anything more. Neither one of them are going to get to sleep tonight, but they’re not going to not sleep together.  
That’s for damned sure.


End file.
